


Leptir

by RetroGamer



Category: Naruto
Genre: Angst and Tragedy, Character Development, Grief/Mourning, Implied/Referenced Rape/Non-con, Major Character Injury, Minor Character Death, Multi
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-04-29
Updated: 2020-05-17
Packaged: 2021-03-02 00:13:58
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death, Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 3
Words: 15,967
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23915869
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RetroGamer/pseuds/RetroGamer
Summary: "Even the darkest of nights will end, for your words to fall upon deaf ears is no reason to stay silent. With war dawning upon us, we must spread our wings." What is the price for innocence? The cost to survive? To burn bridges and soar, sowing chaos with every step, I will do whatever it takes...A butterfly flaps its wings. (OC-SI).You can find this story on Fanfiction.net too at https://www.fanfiction.net/s/13447558/1/Leptir





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> A/N: Thanks for clicking on this fic, I really hope you enjoy it! This is my first time posting a story on here as well as my first attempt writing a full story; constructive criticism would be really helpful! If you have any questions feel free to leave me a message. Warning, this fic will deal with sensitive subject matter, you have been warned and I’ll try my best to place a warning before anything that may be disturbing. I do not own Naruto or anything in the Naruto universe, my OCs are the only things that belong to me.

In a world different from our own, in a place drowned in mist and rain, within its cramped corridors this village called roads, I ran. Pumping my leaden legs, I could feel with every step my muscles dogged with throbbing anguish, chest constricted, straining with each choked, panting breath.

Numb from the bone-chilling cold, the cries of my aching muscles were the only thing piercing the deadness which engulfed my body. My mind so numbed, I barely felt the road's small sharp rocks stab into my chilled skin as I lurched to the ground. The sharp gasp that was ripped out of me, by the suddenness of the puddle's coldness ravaging my senses, was barely drowned out by the endless deluge drumming everything in sight.

I dared not move, heart clenched and mind hazed, as I slowly peered around me for any sight of them. _What if **they** had heard my gasp? What if **they** were barrelling towards me, at this very moment?_ However, through the blur of tears or rain, I did not know which, I saw nothing but the desolate road before me. Nothing but packed tight buildings, from which rivulets of rainwater cascaded from their roofs like waterfalls and splattered onto the ground before them. Time slowed as foreboding rose to claim me, the pulsing ghosts of pain my only company as the rain hammered my body which laid in the pool of icy water all the while.

After what felt like decades, with nothing but the deafening silver nails of rain thundering around me, my hammering heart finally began to calm. A shaky breath I hadn't even realise I was holding escaped me. _It seems **they** hadn't found me yet_...

I attempted to push myself up with my arms only to collapse back into the puddle as my body screamed its discontent. Taking a moment I tried, again and again, each time splashing back into that godforsaken puddle as my body failed me. I felt my heart clench. _I can't stop now...please, please I need to get up_. Choking on unbidden tears I had held back for so long, my stiff shoulders shook with barely stifled heaving sobs, as I kept trying to get back up failing each time. My whole body heaved unyieldingly with every struggled breath, I dragged myself out of the puddle and through the muck and filth of the road, anything to get me out of that god's forsaken puddle, to keep moving!

Through the haze of desperation, I noticed the wall of one of the many raised steps and bridges scattered throughout this wretched city, pulling my leaden body towards it. As I reached the base, I began to dig my fingers into the wall, desperately looking for any small crevice or dent to get a hold of. Rivulets of flowing crimson coated my frozen fingers, frozen fingers too numb to feel its nails crack, crack as I clutched at the wall with such force. Ignoring the muted pulsing pain in my fingers, I clawed myself up, my racing heart lightening and mind dizzying with the waves of relief as I finally manage to pull myself up. _Yes! Yes, I'm almost up, I need to keep going else I miss my chance to escape!_

Sudden whiplash from experiencing such euphoric mania after drowning in the depths of despair mere moments ago nauseated my weary mind and my heavy heart. Making to push myself off the wall to continue fleeing, a faint yet deafening noise wrenched my heart, rooted my feet...the soft thumping of feet on roof tiles.They're here.

From the sounds of it, they had yet to spot me, though they were deathly near. I pushed myself up against the wall, clutching at myself with blood-stained fingers, attempting to hide behind the curtains of my drenched hair. Gripping my hand over my mouth to silence my whimpers, heart in my throat and lungs suffocating as I urgently smothered my breathing. I waited.

Waiting with bated breath, I waited for them to move on, for the soft thunking of their thunderous footsteps which pierced the showering noise of the rain to stop.

Thunk _..._

Thunk...

Thunk...

Silence...

_Had they gone?_ The pelting rain filled the surrounding as I slowly turned away from the wall, hand clutching at my speeding heart, breath hitching...

Nothing. A deep sigh flushed out what little life was left in me as I slumped against the cold, wet wall. My heavy eyes momentarily surrendered to darkness as I tried to reign in my breaths, to steady my quivering heart. I could feel unbidden tears escape my haggard eyes, slowly streaming down my flushed cheeks. I couldn't help the huffs of silent laughter shaking my very being, hiccupping with every puff. _I can't believe it...how did they not see me? Best not to look a gift horse in the mouth...in any case, I need to keep moving._

Pushing myself off the wall, I began to move toward the path of salvation, my muscles protesting with each small step... _how long had I been running? How long since the heavens had opened up and wept its tears onto this stupid village? How much further must I run before I-_

Smack.

My heart seized achingly as a piercing pain gripped my shoulder, a tightness clutching ever tighter on my right shoulder. _No...oh god no, please, no!_ My mind dipped in sheer shock as I let out a pathetic whimper before turning to face my end. _I almost made it...why?_

"Nammy..."

"Nammy."

"Nammy!"

My eyes flew open, before immediately squinting as an onslaught of bright lights blinded me. Blinking blearily, I sluggishly rubbed my eyes before stretching my waking body, arms rigid in the air behind my head with back curled off of the chair I was seated on. I took a moment to relish the slight burning sensation in my stretching body before slumping onto the smooth wooden table in front of me, head resting on crossed arms. I peered through the blur of my yawning tears, trying to determine where I was and how I got here...

The scent of coffee, caramel and nuts invades my nose as the soft sound of Clair de Lune fills the room, flowing from several radios positioned on the walls. The sound of countless voices speaking over one another comes from my right, where numerous oak tables and chairs sit upon the laminated mahogany flooring, just in front of a stage. A person stands centremost on the stage, their rough and shaking voice reciting an unfamiliar poem, an original poem perhaps? Though it seems the patrons have long since lost interest, too busy indulging themselves in the cafe's sweet lattes and cappuccinos to pay the poor man any attention. Muffled car honks and the pitter-pattering of the rain on the floor to ceiling windows to my left drew my attention, looking out my vision was filled with the grey hues of the rain-drenched city. _That's right. We had bumped into each other, having not seen each other in so long, too busy with life to stay in touch. Deciding to meet up again downtown, it had started to drizzle, so we sought shelter in the nearby "Savant"...the cafe we always visited all those years ago..._

"Dozed off again, have we?" taunted an ever-familiar voice, its cooled tone dragging me out of my reverie. _How strange, for her usually pastel voice to waver so mutedly_. I looked to the girl seated opposite to me, a stiff smile constrained her lips, straining to hide the hurt that gleamed plainly in her brown eyes. _We had begun talking while we waited for the drinks we had ordered. Kyra had started to rant about a series she had just finished watching, of how "dumb" the ending had been, as she had put it. What was the rant about again?_

No matter how hard I tried to remember, a blank nothingness was all that came to mind. Shutting my eyes, I sighed out the dazed frustration building in my chest, pinching the bridge of my nose. Opening my eyes and looking at Kyra, I took a moment to gather my thoughts... _what should I say?_ Leaning backwards away from me, she had crossed her arms and legs, tilted her head low and ill-hid her eyes behind brown bangs. The steadfast hollow in my heart stirred nought at this sad sight if anything it took every ounce of my strength to withhold the eye-roll my eyes begged to roll. The words, _"say something"_ , repeatedly ran through my mind, yet my listless lips stayed silent.

_I_ _don't understand why she has to make such a fuss,_ _it's not my fault I dozed off, I didn't do it on purpose. Besides, she shouldn't get upset over something so stupid...I wish I never met up with her._

At that moment, I could feel the throbbing simmer of something, the familiar bubbling of aged shame-filled remorse, boil in the worn cup of apathy within the cellar of my chest. **You're so revolting, typical, you always were so disgustingly selfish...you know why she's upset, you're just too pathetic to own up to it.** Broiling liquid guilt shattered the cup of apathy, overflowing as the gravelly voice spat out its bile, threatening to drown my heart in its tidal waves. **This is why she stopped talking to you, why would she want to be friends with someone like you? You're nothing, nothing but an annoyance...you don't deserve her friendship.** I could feel its grating laughter, that familiarly deep acrid laugh, echo as it does so often in my head. I could feel my throat tighten, my sight hazing as my mind dizzied with fog. As the bustle of the cafe around me gave way to white noise, as my breath was stolen from me, I couldn't help but drown in the flurry of my thoughts. _He's right...why am I like this? I always end up doing this, she probably doesn't even want to be friends with me anymore. I should probably just...just..._

_"Nammy...whenever those thoughts come back I want you to do something for me"_ Another voice hushed into my ears, silencing those cruel cackles, Natasha's calm and warm tone stilled the waves of regret. _"I want you to let them in and immediately let them out, you mustn't cling to them, you'll only make yourself feel worse. Especially when interacting with others, I want you to try and mentalise...I know this may be hard to do, but if you can at least try, it'll go a long way in your therapy."_ Her steady voice, low and soft in my mind, gently lifts the mist that threatened to engulf my head moments ago. I took a moment to breathe, forcing back the snarls of animosity threatening to tear into me. 

Taking another look at Kyra, genuinely looking at her in all her miserable glory, I tried to see myself through her eyes. _If someone dozed off in the middle of my tirade, my tirade on something beloved to me, and dared to huff and puff when confronted about it, how would I have reacted?_ Rivers of disdain for that person, drowning doubts doubting their true feelings towards me, all of it would have sloshed in the whirlpool of my thoughts. The slight downward tilt of her gnawed lips, the small reddened splotches of her glassy eyes, the rigid grip she held on her upper arms, it had all begun to make sense...

Licking my lips and swallowing down the taste of bottled, ripened remorse, I took a shaky breath. "Kyra...I know nothing I'll say will make you believe me, but I'm truly sorry. I didn't mean to doze off, I was up all night finishing up my assignment...I can't even begin to imagine how hurt you must feel. If it's alright with you, could you please start over? I promise you I'll pay attention this time." The honeyed words tremored from the quivers of my throat, I couldn't help but peer at my lap, unable to hold her gaze. _It wasn't precisely a lie per se, sleep had evaded me last night but the cause of it_...blinking away the brief flashes of last night's distress, I instead focused on the butterfly swarm swarming in my stomach.

After what felt like aeons, I worked up the courage to look into her eyes once more, I could see uncertainty cloud them, swirling within them like a typhoon. Her eyes were like hooks on the soul, rooting me in place for what felt like an eternity before she finally spoke. Her shoulders heaved heavily, a hefty sigh escaped her lips as she briefly looked away, before piercing me with her gaze once more. "Whatever..." tightly came the low words. “It was nothing important anyway..." the brittle words cut like shattered glass, though I suppose it was well deserved, all things considered. Sighing quietly, I reach a hand out towards her, placing it on hers resting on the table, and gently clasped it. "Please...you were talking about that series you were watching, Naruto, right?" My voice implored her to continue. She looked at my hand, her eyebrow twitched as she pulled her hand out of my grasp. "Fine, if it'll get you to stop acting so weird" she huffed, rolling her eyes as she leaned back in her chair looking away from me. Sighing, I leaned forward and sat on the edge of my chair, cupping my chin with one hand propped up and drumming the table with the fingers of my other hand.

"I was just talking about how bullshit the ending to Naruto was," she stated slowly, matter-of-factly, waving a hand about. "I mean, Madara absorbs all the tailed beasts to form the ten tails and finally completes this genjutsu, using the moon, that'll trap all of humanity into a dream world where nothing bad happens". She paused for a moment, face grimacing with distaste ", and then this chic just pops right outta him and into existence, ready to kill everyone and take back what was hers as she put it", her quiet voice rose in pitch, her words flowing out faster as she waved her hands about, eyes rolling as she smiled in amusement, seemingly amused with her own satiric display of just how ridiculous the ending had been for her.

I'd have gladly joined her...had I any idea of what the hell she was talking about. My mouth felt stiff, stretched into a practised, plastic-like smile as my eyebrows pinched with confusion, "... Who exactly is this chic? What does she have to do with how terrible the ending was?" The questions came undulating from my throat. "She's Kaguya, gal ate from the chakra tree about a thousand years before the start of the show and got its chakra..." she stared at me in silence, before vigorously shaking her head. She lowly hummed, pressing her cheek to her palm, looking up at the ceiling as though it held the answers to all of her questions. "How do I explain this?" I barely heard the quiet words. She leapt forward, leaning on the table, almost rising out of her seat, her eyes which regained some of the life it had lost earlier set its sights on me. "Let's just say she's the creator of chakra, but the problem is we never hear anything about her until, like, the last minute of the series, she literally popped into existence!" Her tone dripped with disbelief, head shaking slightly and eyes wide as her mouth gaped speechlessly. "Not only that but also that the two main characters are reincarnations of her kids who sealed her in the moon a thousand years ago, forcing the two to do it again! Once they defeated her, Sasuke, who's salty over his whole family being slaughtered years back, decides to destroy the village and promptly battles with naruto!" However, her voice died down as she slumped back into her seat, her sigh brimmed with disappointment, "I mean he loses, but still, it was all so sudden and out of nowhere." The words dripped with pent up dismay.

I had nodded along with her impassioned rambling, humoured her with an eye-squinting smile, cheeks fixed up into that time-worn mask of mine as she gestured relentlessly. Never mind the fact I had no clue what she was on about. _Naruto, Sasuke, a slaughter of an entire family? What?_ "So" my voice roused, the words caught in my mouth as I pondered where to begin, "who is this Naruto then? He seems important if the series is named after him." I asked, tone steady and neutral, head tilting with the lift of an eyebrow. 

Kyra unwounded in her chair, releasing whatever intensity was leftover from her previous ramblings through her nose. The disbelief that pinched her face softened into a slight smile, her eyes gleamed with bright admiration. "Honestly Nammy, he's such a goofball you wouldn't believe it! Orphaned and wanting to become the Hokage-basically the president, of his village yet torments them all with his insane pranks..." Her shoulders heaved with chuckles, she was practically hiccupping with laughter, "H-Honestly, you should see the things he comes up with!" Her gleaming grin drooped, her bright eyes dimmed sadly. "He's gone through a lot, being hated by everyone in the village for having a monster locked up inside of him...but he never stops grinning...never stops fighting". She softly sighed the words out, hugging herself as her lips pulled itself into a wistful smile, "I wish I could be like that, ya know?" The words whispered past her lips as she looked up at me, her eyes blissfully bright steeled itself, looking away as her cheeks flushed bright red.

I eased the corners of my mouth, stiffened by the smile it had once held, and relaxed my squinting eyes into polished softness. I reached across the table and clutched Kyra's hand, tilting one end of my lips lopsidedly "Oh, I know." The jest sang from my throat as an eyebrow perked up impishly. She swatted my hand away, shaking her head as she rolled her eyes, puffs of chuckles blew past her lips "um, haha, I may have gotten a little carried away." She twiddled with a strand of her lengthy hair, smiling a small flustered smile. No doubt she took note of the few eyes staring at our table, more specifically at her slowly reddening form. I couldn't help the chuckle that tremored from my throat, my mouth stretching into a light grin "It's fine Kyra, honestly. If anything it's endearing to see you so worked up about this...reminds me of that crush you had ages ago, remember him?...what was his name again?" leaning back and crossing my legs, I tapped a finger to my jaw in mock thinking, voice low and questioning "Bobby? ...Billy?" I couldn't help the smirk that pursed my lips. "Brian?" Her voice hiked in pitch, the name cracking on her lips, she raised a fist to her mouth as she coughed the embarrassment that had lodged itself in her throat. "That? It was nothing! Honestly, It was just a little crush..." Her cheeks reddened when she locked eyes with mine, seeing the disbelief etched upon my raised eyebrows and lopsided grin, stammering as she gaped to find an answer. "Uh-huh, little, huh?" I hummed humorously "That's not what the hours of fangirling said, how long did they last again, I swear the hot chocolate grew cold in the kitchen by the time you were done." 

Her rosy cheeks puffed, her soft sigh drenched in humiliation, leaning back with arms crossed and gaze set outside the window. "Oh come on, I wasn't that bad...I got over him pretty quickly after **_that_** fiasco." Her whole body shuddered with an "ugh", face scrunched up with disgust "T-the time he-he puked on you after chowing down on that firecracker curry!" My voice shook with ill-kept giggling, my hand covering my mouth did little to muffle the chuckles threatening to escape. _God, I remember the hours it took us to scrub the putrid stench of sick out of her shirt afterwards._ Kyra pouted in chagrin, though from the trembling of her lips, the slight shake of her shoulder, I knew she too struggled to hold in her laugh. It didn't take long for the bottled laughter to shatter the silence between us.

"God I missed this..." the hushed words whispered from my mouth, the ever-present blankness that made itself home in my heart all those years ago, filled itself with lapping waves of warm nostalgia. Kyra's own grin softened into a content smile, "Yeah", her voice, quiet, felt as warm as sunlit sand on the beaches of nostalgia "Me too."

Kyra's grin opened to speak. However, the appearance of the waitress, the mouth drooling aroma of frothed milk and melted chocolate, announced our order's arrival. Kyra's mouth snapped shut, she shrank into her seat, all but pressing her face into the window. The waitress' sickly sweet smile dimmed somewhat as she peered at Kyra's form, the girl shifting shyly in her seat, hands tucked into legs and gaze locked onto the bustling road outside. "Um...your drinks? The Black Forest Hot Chocolate is yours, correct?" sentimentality blowing past my lips, _I guess time doesn't change everything, bombastic as ever but introduce her to a stranger and she'll be silenced into shyness._ Lips eased smoothly into a smile, chest intensely baking as my head shook softly with baked tenderness, and I accepted our delights from the waitress. I leisurely set the table, giving Kyra ample time to recover.

As the waitress glided with practised ease between the numerous tables and patrons, back to the barista bar, Kyra's tensed form relaxed a soft shuddering sigh whispered past her lips. She covered her mouth with a fist, coughing into it as she gazed into the hot chocolate, cheeks pinking softly. I cupped my pleasantly warm cup of hot chocolate. I raised it to my lips, giggling into the ceramic rim as I eyed Kyra, watching the way her face scrunched up into a grimace. She Peered at me through squinting eyes, her vexed lips pouting as she scrunched up a napkin and threw it at me. "Meanie" she huffed as I dodged the wad of tissue, chest shaking with great chuckles. Her grimace softened into a smile, eyes rolling so hard I feared they'd pop out of her eye sockets, raising her own mug of mouth-watering hot chocolate. Huffing the last breaths of laughter, I finally indulge in my drink. My body melted as melted chocolate bathed my mouth with its warmth, mouth watered as my taste buds smothered in its luxurious sugariness. 

"So, you mentioned you were working on your assignment? What exactly is it for, uni? I know you mentioned you wanted to go into nursing." She had asked as she leant forward on the table, her hands cupping her mug of hot cocoa, a single finger tracing the ceramic handle. Kyra's words swirled with the rest of the thoughts which stewed in the pot of my mind, as I pondered how to best describe the past couple of years. "Well, not exactly...I completed the first year of my paediatric nursing course, but I left it, it just..." past nights of restlessness as sleep evaded capture, swimming too deeply in the depths of drowning fears and worries to be caught, all before the day shifts at the ward whirled in the whirlpool of my mind. Memories of shifts spent lost, wading through the muck of helplessness borne from ignorance, trying to flee from failure that hounded every sunken step. The final image of a man with blonde hair bathed in moonlight, his eyes drowned in misery and betrayal, his eyes accusing, stabbed at my heart of hearts. "...It just wasn't for me, I wasn't made for the stresses of nursing I guess, the kids deserved better than that, so I left." Shrugging I eyed my cup, anchoring myself to it to stay above the turbulent currents the memories threatened to wash me away with. Coughing to clear the wad tightening my throat, I breathed deeply. "I'm finishing up a teaching assistant course, already working in a day-care with some tutoring on the side, hoping to eventually become a teacher". I spoke, taking care to steady the lightly spoken words, ignoring the weight in my chest.

"Oh, well I'm happy to hear you've been doing well! Still, I'm sorry to hear about uni...I know how hard you worked to get in, how many times did you ditch our Costa Fridays just to get in that last bit of studying?" her smooth voice lilted, a small teasing smile playing on her lips. I knew what she was trying to do, she was always too observant for her own good... still ready to fight banter in hand to bat away any frown. "Come on, I didn't _always_ ditch you." I played along, nibbling the corners of my mouth to hold back the smile, trying to shine through. "Yes, you did! I swear, you basically lived in that dusty, old library! Day in and day out stressing your butt off over nothing!" The words sparked from her electrifying grin, hand waving towards me with every word. Shaking with chuckles I gave in "Ok, so maybe I was a little...high-strung". "High-strung doesn't _begin_ to cover it." the words whispered loudly from her mouth, her grin barely held back. _There's no winning with her!_ My head shook with exasperation, laughing all the while. 

Raising my cup to my lips and tilting back to drink, I felt the absence of hot chocolate in my mouth, I realised I had already drunk it all. _When had I-whelp, I guess they were right when they say time flies when you're having fun._ Placing the empty mug back onto the table I sigh, looking to the clock and realising how late it had gotten I began to get up and lift my things. "I can't put into words how much fun it's been seeing you again Kyra, it pains me to have to leave early but... I've got a date later tonight I got to get ready for-". 

"A date?" 

Her voice usually softly quiet, boomed with the exclamation, in the ensuing silence that engulfed the cafe, the sound echoed loudly. The eyes of everyone in the cafe staring at the girl stood straight out of her seat with palms slammed on the table, face exploding with unadulterated joy and excitement...that was until realisation dawned upon her, and crimson red painted her face, her pale hands doing little to cover it as she lowered back into her chair.

Once the bustle of the cafe slowly returned, and my body ceased to shake with ill-kept laughter, did I deign to continue. "Y-yes" the word shook lowly from my throat, still recovering from the onslaught of laughter, "I matched with someone...familiar, online." I finished, raising a knuckle to wipe the winks of tears that creased in my eyes from the bouts of laughter. Though the thought of seeing Nathaniel again after so long left me fearful, heart aching with the weight of past memories and guilt, Kyra's outburst helped distract me from the thoughts, calming the anxiety building deep within. Sighing out low and breathily, heart calm on contentment, I wrapped my arms around Kyra, hugging her goodbye. As I made towards the door, I heard her hushed voice brimming with excitement "you better tell me everything later Nammy, I'm not letting you get away with this easily!" she winked at me. Though I tried to smile for her, the lingering fear of seeing Nathaniel again tensed my smile.

Stepping out onto the grey pavement, I made my way down the path that would take me back to home sweet home. I could feel the dampness of my red duffle coat as I grasped the collar, could feel clenched fingers freeze in the cold. Looking through strands of hair, frizzing in the drizzle downpour, I watch the performance of the city. Focusing on the scenery to anchor myself above the waves of fear for tonight's meeting.

The innumerable faceless people, walking in beat to the symphony of car honks of cars trapped in traffic, singing through the scripts of their songs; myriads of stories untold. I couldn't help butwonder _what do their stories hold? What lives they must live, single chapters out of the billions that comprise the book that is life._ The thought seemed silly, expected even. Yet, I always find myself breezed by fresh awe, every time I rediscover this simple fact. _Best not to dwell on it_ I concluded. There were more important things to worry about like getting out of the increasingly worsening downpour or to get the soppy cling of my soaked clothes off of me.

All the while, as I walked down that pavement, an unnoticed shadow loomed after me. The familiar numbness in my chest gave way to unease, my body became unhinged by such inexplicable intensity. Staggering to a stop, I could feel the blaze...of a gaze captivate my whole being, searing my very core. A mere pebble in the rivers of flowing crowds, I looked around me, searching for anything. The gaze's embers burned hotter and hotter every moment I turned frantically, until finally, as I swerved to look behind me, the sensation vanished. Nothing. Nobody was there, just the currents of people walking past me.

_It...was probably just my imagination, right? Yeah... I'm just tired, that's all._ The thought fell short on deaf ears, that...feeling, it had felt too real to be mere coincidence. _I should hurry home._ Turning I speed towards home, never seeing the shadow in the crowd following after me...


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Hey guys! Sorry for taking so long to get this chapter out, I’ve been so busy with finishing my course and the whole worry about the pandemic, I deeply hope all of you are staying safe during these trying times! I’ve finally gotten around to finishing this chapter as well as making some edits to chapter one. I want to thank you all for your patience, it means a lot to me. I’d also like to apologise for how…overly described chapter one was, it was the first time I had decided to write something akin to a story and I fear my excitement got in the way of keeping things concise and enjoyable XD I promise to do better from now on. I hope you enjoy and I promise next chapter we’ll finally be in Naruto-verse, I wanted to use chapter 1 and 2 to establish Nemanja as a character, so I promise the following chapters won’t be so excessively introspective and detailed when it comes to Nemanja and his thoughts.

It was four in the afternoon when I finally reached the bus stop, having just about slipped through the closing red doors of the double-decker bus. _Made it!_ I thought in relief as I swiped my bus pass over the scanner and headed towards the stairs. As I strolled up the stairs, I felt myself lurch back as the bus hummed into motion, grasping the handrail to stop myself from toppling backwards. Only when I had regained my footing did I dare continue up the stairs, hopping into the closest seat once I reached the top of the stairs. Dumping my bag next to me, I leaned my head against the window and let its crisp coolness chill my left temple. 

Looking out the window, through the droplets of rain sluicing down the steamed-up glass, I watched as the scenery blurred past. As I wiped the fog off the fogged up glass with the cuff of my jacket, I couldn't help but think back to the moment I left the cafe, _what was that? It felt as though someone was...following me?_ The chill that had shot up my spine at the time trembled once more, trembling up my body.The mere thought of someone following me left a stale taste in my mouth. _No, I must've just imagined it...yeah, that's it, after all, who on earth would want to follow me, of all people?_ Though I tried to wave off the absurd possibility of someone trailing me, my chest still swelled with uncertainty.

_Perhaps I'm just **that** tired...could be just the sleep deprivation getting the better of me. _Doubt continued to plague me as high-rises gave way to suburbs, the bus fast approaching my stop. I rose from my seat unsteadily, clutching the seats in front of me as the bus swayed, turning down onto a smaller road. With each step, I stumbled my way towards the stairs, cautious as I made the shaky descent down. I faltered towards the bottom of the stairs as the bus lurched to a stop, barely balancing myself on the railing. I sighed with relief when I finally regained my footing once more. Conscious of the other bus-riders walking past me towards the exit, I hastened my step, swiping my bus-pass yet again on the scanner.

Hopping out into the onslaught of rain, I quickened my step down the road, feeling my shoes squelching as I splashed down the rain rinsed pavement. My mind bleared as I glid past red-bricked terraced houses, my soaked fringes slapping my face with each stride. _God, of all days for it to rain! It had to be the day I didn't wear a hoodie._ The thought huffed in my mind as I flew down the road, every step weighed down by the weight of my soaked clothing.

As I saw my house fast approaching in the distance, my aching feet cried in relief, slowing to a halt once I reached the small gate at the front of my house. Lifting the latch, I swung the metal gate open; its hinges creaked in protest, scraping the cobbled path that led to the front door. I hopped up the stone step right in front of the door and rapped my knuckles on the door's frosted glass window.

It didn't take long before the gentle pitter-pattering of rain was drowned out by the loud, muffled clomping of little feet on wooden flooring and the shrill chattering of children. I could barely make out mum's softer footfalls as the raucousness reached the front doors. The lock clicked, and with a kerchunk, the door swung open.

"Nammy!"

The squealing of two small children, each varying in size, knocked the air out of me as they dragged me down with their hugs. As they clung onto me, they began their interrogation. My sole sister peered up at me, "Where were you?” her trebled voice bid of me. I raised the arm she clung onto, and as she hung in the air, her deep frown gave way to giggles as she kicked her legs back and forth. "I was just seeing a friend, Ana." I chuckled out over the sound of her giggles. My lips stretched into a smile as I then raised the leg my youngest sibling Dario clung onto, his hiccupped giggling joining Anna's squeals of laughter.

As I hopped inside, children hanging from me, mum's vivacious chuckles resounded over the kid's squeals and giggles. "That's enough now! Get off your brother before you topple him over, besides you still need to help me decorate the tree!” The mere mention of the word "tree" set them off as they leapt off of me and raced down the hall's laminated flooring and left through the living room’s arch. As she walked towards me, a chuckle slipping past her beaming smile, mum squeezed me into a hug. "Mum...you're killing me", I gasped out dramatically. "Oh please", she retorted, voice filled with amusement as she pulled away "you need to stop being so dramatic". I eyed the raise of her eyebrow on her smiling face, "oh yeah? Say that to my broken ribs" I huffed with feigned indignation. Her smile widened into a grin as she playfully slapped my arm, "oh stop it, any who, how was it seeing Kyra? I know how worried you were this morning to see her again after so long." 

Remembering the time spent in the cafe with Kyra brought a smile to my face as a wave of warm contentedness washed over me, besides the tinge of worry about tonight, it had been wonderful seeing her again. "From the look on your face, I'm guessing it went well, huh?" she said knowingly, eyes brimming with cheer as she crossed her arms "Oh, honey, I'm so happy to hear you had fun, I can't wait to hear all about it later, but first I've got to finish setting up the tree." I couldn't help but sigh as I rolled my eyes at her words. "I still think it's way too early to be setting up the Christmas tree mum; it isn't even December yet!" I said bemusedly, leaning against the wall with my arms crossed. "Oh please, I've told you time and time again it's never too early to start celebrating Christmas", she called out festively as she turned towards the living room. I sighed concededly, not wanting to start another dispute on the topic, following her down the hallway and towards the carpeted stairs to the right of me. She stopped at the living room's arch, looking over her shoulder, "Oh! I almost forgot, I was just about to go get the boxes of decorations from the attic but since you're finally back, can you go get them for me instead, please?”

"Sure" I called out as I hopped up the stairs, "just give me a second". Once at the top of the stairs, I walked down the carpeted hallway and looked up, reaching for the piece of string that would let down the step ladder that led to the attic. Waving away the onslaught of dislodged dust, coughing out the troublesome specs all the while, I began climbing up the old wooden ladder into the dark, dust-riddled room. Standing at the top of the ladder, I looked around the room, filled with towering boxes. How mom managed to fit so much in a place so small, I'll never know. Hunched over, I precariously made my way between the pillars of boxes; the attic's rickety old floorboards creaked with every step. Finally, after minutes spent with my gradually aching back hunched over, crawling through layers of dust, I spotted the colourful box that brimmed with Christmas decorations. 

However, as I made my way to grab the box, I bumped into a small stack of worn boxes next to me, sending them tumbling to the ground. Their contents spilt all over the floor, kicking up a cloud of dust from the floor, blinding me in a fit of coughs. After coughing up a flood of filth which still burned in the back of my throat, waving the dust cloud away from my face, I opened my squinting eyes and got onto the floor to pick up the toppled boxes.

As I made to pick up the boxes though, a slight shimmer of light caught my attention. I reached out for it, my hand grasping what seemed like a trophy, an achingly recognisable trophy. In my hand was what should have been a small, gold-painted clef statue placed on a black base which held a small gold-painted plate. Instead, in my hand was a pitiful imitation of the original, a husk of its former self. The gold paint had peeled and rusted, the clef itself broken with parts missing, it barely held onto the black base. The engravings on the golden plate faded, with the year, "2008" scarcely legible. _This is.._.I glanced around me where similar trophies now lay scattered on the floor, a veritable requiem from the past. Rust and decay were all that remained, an array of worn, engraved years etched onto them, with the most recent year dating back to "2012". I clutched my still soaking shirt; I tried to uproot roots which had begun to entangle my heart, tightening relentlessly as a torrent of memories started to surge from the ravines of my mind.

With breaths quickening, I quickly began clutching the awards and threw them back into the time-worn box, trying to drain the memories back into the trenches of my mind. Shoving the box back into place, I snatched the cardboard box full of decorations and barged through the boxes back to the ladder. Stumbling onto the ladder, I had almost fallen down the ladder in my urgency. Still, I couldn't care less...so long as I got out of that damned attic. After shoving the attic's step ladder back into the ceiling, I paused for a moment in the carpeted hallway, leaning against the railing of the stairs. Closing my eyes, I tried to calm my heavy breaths, to steady the flurry of emotions churning within my racing heart.

"Nemanja!" I heard mum shout for me from downstairs, "Have you gotten the decorations yet?” taking a second to recollect myself, I took a couple of deep breaths, trying to calm the whirling gust crashing within the confines of my heart. "Yeah!" I called back, clearing my throat to get rid of the quiver in my voice, "I'm coming down". There was a moment of silence before I heard her respond, voice tinged with uncertainty, "okay" a pause, "is everything alright?” _Great, I've worried her._ I took a moment to gather my thoughts, "yeah, everything's fine mum" I called out to her, "just fine" I shakily sighed out to myself.

I turned towards the stairs once I felt stable enough and made my way down, box in my arms, and heart windswept with emptiness as the gusts of sentiment that had stormed but a moment ago gave way to emptiness' breezes. Heading through the archway and into the living room, I behold the bare Christmas tree in the corner, nestled between two leather couches, facing the TV above the brick fireplace. Before I could place the decorations down in front of the tree, Dario and Anna swarmed me, making to snatch the box from my arms in a flurry of "give me"s and laughter. "Calm down, you two, you don't want to break the decorations, do you?" my mother called out above their clamouring, pointedly looking at them with arms crossed. "No" Anna called out, the very image of docile as she steps away from the decorations, grabbing Dario's hand to get him to stand next to her. The younger boy looked to her briefly before imitating her in what would have been the perfect image of patience were it not for the fidgeting that belied his impatience.

Finally, I placed the box down in front of the Christmas tree to be, though the silence of peace broke instantly as Anna and Dario immediately abandoned their humble postures and rushed to the box, oh-ing and aw-ing at the Christmas baubles and ruffles held within the box. Mum shook her head exasperatedly, though the smile on her face betrayed her amusement at the two. As she made her way to the two, she stopped by me, gently placing a hand on my shoulder. Though mum smiled I could see the slight concern that brewed plainly in her eyes, "are you sure everything's alright? You know I'm always here if you need me, right?" she pressed softly. The bitter emptiness that had aerated my heart began to warm with her warmth, "I'm fine mom", I paused hesitantly, debating whether or not to tell her, not wanting to worry her over something so petty and small " it's just...some ghosts from the past is all" I said aloofly.

I could see that my answer did little to assuage her worries, though she seemed to let it go, probably planning on giving me some time to myself before broaching the subject again as she does so often. "Okay then...I'm down here if you need me" her voice picked up, her small smile stretching into a grin, "now go clean up, you're still soaked, getting water and dust all over my floorboards, do you have any idea how long it takes me to keep them clean?". She gave me a slight push towards the living room entrance, a teasing smile on her lips as she continued to make her way towards the two children who had started fighting over the decorations. I could hear her assertive voice, the voice of reason, trying to mediate their argument as I hopped back upstairs.

Reaching the top of the stairs, I pathed down to the end of the carpeted hallway and hastily entered my room, heading straight for the closet. After throwing some clothes I found stylish enough for a date over my shoulder, I left my bedroom and headed straight for the bathroom. Closing and locking the door behind me, I placed the pile of clothes onto the closed lid of the toilet and jumped into the bath, twisted the tap and let a stream of sublime, warm water pour out. 

I washed off the dust and filth from my body, hair and face; merely going through the motions, too busy pushing back the lingering drafts of memories that persisted.

Once the tub had filled up, I shut the tap off and reclined, submerging my body, still chilled from the downpour outside, into the luxuriously warm water. My eyes rolled closed as I let loose a breathy sigh, delighting in the heat blanketing my body, the miserable chill that had taken root deep within from my time outside gave way to balmy contentment. Anchoring my focus to the sensation of warmth cocooning my body, I hummed a soft tune as I let my mind wander away from memories and instead to the realm of daydreams, daydreaming of fantastical tales and grand adventures.

As I languished in the bath, abandoning reality's grey miseries for fantasy's coloured joys, time slipped by and before I knew it afternoon's dusk had darkened into twilight. The chill of the cooling waters woke me as I opened my heavy eyes now tired from their long rest. I washed off the last bit of suds and removed the cap before I sluggishly pulled myself out of the chilled bath, waking up my leaden limbs. Grabbed a towel from the nearby towel radiator I lazily pat myself dry. Once dry I put on my white long-sleeved shirt, putting on a purple jumper over it the finally pulling on my black jeans and black socks, readying myself for whatever tonight would throw at me.

Opening the bathroom door, I made for my room again, a fog of steam that had built up from my bath trailing after me. As I entered my room, I immediately made for my computer chair, dropping into it and leaning back, breathing out a deep sigh. After languishing in my chair for a minute or two, I sat myself up and dragged myself closer to the desk with the balls of my feet, eagerly placing my hands on the keyboard of my computer bringing the humming machine back to life.

Looking at the time on the bottom right, I pondered what to do, still having time before I had to leave at 7 pm. My eyes gazed over several icons of video games, ranging from MMORPGs to horror games. The temptation to dive into a world different to my own, into worlds brimming with adventures and reveries, was overwhelming. However, peering up to the shelf full of books for teaching assistance above me, the guilt of spending time doing nothing productive fought against entertainment's beckoning. After an embarrassing amount of time wasted spent contemplating the choices before me, I finally gave in with a breath of annoyance, reaching up for the book covering the second unit of my course. 

I spent the next hour, material and books for studying spread out before me, reading and re-reading the same page multiple times over, my brain too busy either trying to drift into daydreams or thinking of Nathaniel to focus. It had been a while since I last saw him, since we last had a date like this. Memories of our time spent together began to flood my mind...all the things I did to him before I got help and met Natasha. _It’s been so long, I just hope he won't be too angry with me, that he'll let me explain myself...and to apologise for what I did._ I tried to distract myself from the worry and doubt gnawing at my very core...but still the thought, " _am I doing the right thing?",_ continued to echo within the confines of my mind. By the time I had to leave, I had barely done anything, getting up from my chair as my heart rode on a carousel of disappointment, remorse and frustration.

Walking down the stairs and towards the front door, I picked up some dark brown casual shoes from the shoe rack to put on. "Have fun tonight, honey!" Mum's voice rang out, her head peeking out of the living room archway, the sound of the kid's giggling resounding out of the living room. As I grasped the door handle, unlocking the lock, I looked back over my shoulder at her. Despite the lingering frustration, I managed to pull my lips into a smile for her, "Yeah, wish me luck!" I called back. "Good luck, honey, don't stay out too late!" Her face beamed with a proud smile, walking into the hallway, hugging herself as she raised a finger to wipe away a non-existent tear "my little boy, all grown up" she spoke, her voice shaking with a feigned sob and sniff. I opened the door and made my way out, eyes rolling with a quick "I love you" thrown her way before I closed the door, a muffled "I love you" called back from behind the door.

Thankfully the rain had ceased its downpour, though everything was still drenched, dripping with water. As I made my way down the rain-soaked pavement, heading for the nearby town centre, I took out my phone to check my messages. Immediately I saw a few missed calls and a couple of unread messages from Nathaniel, most likely from when I was in the bath. _"Can't wait to see you tonight, to get some answers finally", "There's a lot I need to talk to you about", "Why aren't you answering my calls? You still want to meet up, right? I need to see you, to hear what you have to say."_ The messages were ceaseless, already the doubt from earlier began to grow... _was this a good idea, I just wanted to explain myself, to apologise for what I did to him when..._

_I could still recall the way the light in his eyes dwindled as his smile which used to be as bright as the morning sun the day I met him, set like the setting sun at our last meeting as the words I spoke choked the air between us. Nathaniel came to me that night for a reprieve, like a devotee in search of a miracle. As he looked to me to wipe the tears of his grief, the weight of a year's worth of failures, straining to hold his recent loss._

_I left him._

_A year tainted by twisted "love" if it could even be called love, culminating into that ruinous night, by the lakeshore where we met, under the light of the moon. I could still remember the numb depths of my indifference, that ever-familiar presence that had grown throughout the year, as I left another relationship splintered, the pieces of our brittle "love" scattered like shattered glass._

_I left him there, crushed by the burden of my lies and manipulations, sucked dry of all life and energy._

I shook my head, the years’ worth of gnawing guilt rose to consume me once more, _no, this is the right thing to do, I can finally get this over with if apologising for what I did could help him move on...it's the least he deserves...but the way he's acting._ My chest heaved with a heavy sigh, my eyes closing with the weight of uncertainty. _I have to do this, no backing out now._

Opening my eyes, the sight of the town centre greeted me, closed market stalls and storefronts stretching out as far as the eye could see, the yellow fluorescent light of lamp posts keeping night's darkness at bay. There wasn't a soul in sight. I looked down at my phone once more and finally sent Nathaniel a reply. _I'm in the town centre, where are you?_ Immediately I got a response. _I'm right here._

The hum of a car grew louder; I looked up to see a dark, rather old looking car stop in front of me, its dark tinted windows showing little of what's inside, barely giving away Nathaniel's silhouette. One of the tinted windows lowered, revealing the face of a man I hadn't seen in ages, a strained smile tensed his lips. "Nemanja...it's good to see you, how long has it been?” his voice curt and constrained. "It has been a while" I answered, I tried to smile brightly, but I could feel awkwardness strain my lips, "may I come in?” a pregnant pause lingered between us, his eyes piercing me with such intensity. Shuffling on my feet, I tried not to look away from him, but the heat of his gaze, ill-conceiving an emotion I could not begin to discern, burned.

Before I could string together a flurry of pleasantries to take my leave and back out of this meeting, he broke the silence. "Of course," he said, a biting tone piercing through his voice, "get in". Swallowing the swell of unease building in the back of my throat, I opened the car door and sat in the passenger's seat beside him.

The only noise resounding between us was the rumble of his car engine growling back to life as he pulled out of the marketplace and toward whatever our destination was. I looked towards Nathaniel, now that inside of the car unshaded, I could finally see how cruelly time has treated him. It had been two years since we were last together yet despite the short time apart he seemed to have changed so much.

His usually groomed and well-kept disposition was replaced with an unkempt visage. His blonde hair once sophisticatedly styled was now scruffy, his outfit often thought out, and fashionable replaced with worn clothes, ill-fitting for what was meant to be a date. His green eyes that once glimmered as bright as emeralds on a sunny day, so full of hope and trust now darkened like crushed grass, exhaustion lined his eyes. Guilt which once gnawed now feasted upon me, threatening to consume every last morsel of my being... _Nathaniel, what happened to you? What did I do to you?_ The words echoed in my mind.

As we neared a red light, the car slowing down to stop, I decided to disturb the disquieting silence that filled the air between us. "Nath" I cleared my throat to calm the shakiness quivering my voice, "Nathaniel, I didn't come here for a _date..._ I came here because there's something I needed to talk to you about, something I have no doubt you need to hear from me...something regarding what I-" the words lodged in my throat, my mouth kept opening and closing wordlessly, speechless as I struggled to find the words to tell him why I did what I did. All the while, I could see that next to me Nathaniel's hands kept clenching and unclenching the steering wheel, I could see his chest begin to heave with each breath as though the mere sound of my voice weighed wearily on him. 

Snapping my mouth shut, I took a deep breath and cleared my throat once more. I _had to do this_. I _need to do this_. "Nathaniel" I began, voice though jolted rang clearer, my body steeling itself with determination, "I came here to apologise for how I treated you all those years ago." 

I could see his form drip with tension, his hands whitening with the sheer pressure of his grasp on the wheel, chest raising deeper, ragged breaths. I worked up the nerve to continue.

"The way I played with your emotions, swung between love and hate, treating you with kindness in one moment and then cruelty the next...and finally...for leaving you when you needed me most." I swallowed the shame and self-hatred beginning to swirl in the recesses of my chest as the memories of our time together, my cruelty, played out once more before my very eyes.

_I could remember the way my heart steadily swung back then, a pendulum chained to emotions, moments my heart would burst with love and joy, yet in others engulfed by disgust and despair, both toward others and towards myself—I was a veritable carousel of desire and disdain with momentary slips into overwhelming numbness. Throughout it all, lingering remorse chorused by the epitaphs of the past mocking my every waking moment, a desire for normalcy and deluding myself into thinking that everything was fine._

_The final blow that opened my eyes to the fact that I needed to get help was weeks before I left him, the one time I decided to give in to his demand for intimacy...to see for myself if I was ready, if I had finally moved on from what happened to me decades prior. Resounding failure marred that night, marked by an emptiness deeper than the deepest depths, a nostalgic blankness I hadn't felt in so long...I remember little from that night, only the desperate need clawing deep within to leave. Dizzying desperation to get as far away and to forget everything to do with Nathaniel._

_That was when I determined to leave Nathan forever, to leave university, no matter how guilty I would have felt for ruining what was between us._

_However, I was too lost, reflecting, to realise Nathaniel had slipped into his own pit of grief and despair. As the time I made him spend with me began harming his academics, the burden of my emotions weighing heavily on him and finally, the unforeseen death of his mother days later had all set him down the path to ruin. When he needed me most, I had already deserted him..._

I had finally gotten the help I needed, worked for years now to resolve my issues, to try and become a better person. _But Nath,_ I looked towards Nathaniel...he looked blurry. I lifted a hand to my eyes, rubbing them only to be greeted by the feeling of something wet on my fingers. I hadn't realised I began to tear up. _Nathaniel...you never got the help you needed, you never got to rec_ o _ver from me, from everything that happened, did you?_

"I know nothing I say can change what I've done to you, that no amount of apologies can ever fix what I've done...but I need you to know that I'm sorry, for everything. I wasn't in a good place mentally, but I've finally gotten the help I needed to get better...I'm sorry if what I've told you now isn't what you wanted to hear, but frankly, there's nothing left for me to say. I'm sorry" I could feel my face contort with remorse; my chest weighed down by the weight of the memories between us.

It was then I realised that something was wrong, deeply wrong. Nathaniel had yet to drive, even though the red light of the traffic light had turned green sometime during my speech. His face was stony with indifference, but his eyes blazed with a firestorm of emotions. He began to chuckle, a vitriolic sound, seething with distaste. "Is that it? Is that all you have to say? That you couldn't control your fucking emotions, so you decided to play with mine you fucking bitch?" he spat his barb with such sharpness, cutting me to the core, "you just had to walk into my fucking life, didn't you? Just waltzed right in and ruined everything". His voice snarled coarsely, his chest rising with every laboured breath as though the sheer weight of his disdain for me was too much. His heated glare had fanned into an inferno, threatening to consume me in its baleful flames, and there was nowhere for me to run.

I opened my mouth to say something, anything, he slammed onto the pedal and swerved into one of the empty streets. It took all of my might to cling to the handrail above me to stop myself from veering, my seatbelt digging into me, barely holding me in place as my heart strained under the tightening coils of terror. My heartbeat like a drum, drumming on panic, my mind began to blur, his sheer hatred unexpected I could see the suburbs and high rises give way to water as we sped onto one of the many bridges that led out of town. 

Nathaniel's biting voice broke me from my daze, from staring out at the lake's waters blurring past, "Did you honestly expect me to forgive you? That we'd be all buddy-buddy after this?" He dryly laughed out, voice drenched with sarcasm, "after what you did to me? I got kicked out of university weeks after you left, because of how much time you fucking needed from me...then when my mum, the only person I had left in my damn life died, and I came to you, looked to you for once for some kind of fucking comfort you just left me! “He roared out, his foot now digging into the pedal, the car's speed increasing to mind-dizzying speeds.

My mind began to suffocate under the crashing waves of dread surging inside me, swirling my mind into a dizzy. "Nathaniel, please" my voice, cracked, I couldn't stop gasping for air, sobs hiccupped incessantly from my lips as ears begin to wet my cheeks, "please stop the car, you're going to crash us!" My voice babbled louder.

No response. Only Nathaniel's face, creased with the weight of his disdain, belied his motive. His eyes were burning with rage and conviction.

"Nathaniel" my throat cried out, voice shrill as the lights of other cars blurred by, echoed car honks sped by my ears as vehicles swerved out of the way to avoid the bullet that was now Nathaniel's car. Realising he wasn't going to stop, that we were getting further and further away from home, the fear of what he was trying to do chocked any thought. Mind blank on panic and desperation to survive, I unbuckled my seatbelt and lurched for the wheel, anything to get him to stop. My eyes shut, a gasp ripped from my throat, and my heart achingly beat one final beat. Time slowed.

The sharp scrape of grinding metal of the car, crumpling into the metal railing of the bridge deafened the air. I felt my body lurch forward, listless, before cutting pain began slicing the side of my face and body, the sound of a thousand pieces of shattering glass tinkling deafens me.

Then there was nothingness, only the whistling of air speeding by; suddenly, I feel my heart lurch to the depths along with my body with such speed, I barely had time to breathe.

Splash. 

The sound of burbling water and countless bubbles floating filled my ears.

Water engulfed my battered body; pain contorting throughout my being as I began to choke on water, water which flooded my open mouth as I tried to scream for help, mind blank on fear to comprehend what was happening. I was sinking like a stone. I felt my clothes greedily drink from the lake, weighing my helpless body down. My eyes shot open; only the full moon distorted by the lapping waves of the lake's surface met my blurred sight.

I tried to reach an arm out towards the moon, but the knives of pain stabbing it with every movement hindered me. 

**_I don't want to die!_ **

My heart was drowning in a whirlpool of emotions, as memories of mom's smiling face filled my vision, children's laughter echoing in my ears... _who's...laughs?_ Consciousness began to allude me, drowning in the lapping waves of despair.

_I don't...want to die..._

The image of what seemed to be a cafe spread out before my eyes...a girl sitting before me...her name washed away from me but her smile, a smile brighter than sunshine remained. She was saying something, her form shaking with what seemed like laughter...but there was no sound...nothing but ringing silence deafening my ears, and the scarce melody of Claire de Lune piercing the ringing silence.

_I...don't..._

My thoughts began to go blank, swamped by the pain of my searing lungs, burning as they filled with water. Sight blurring as I lost consciousness, the last thing I saw was the blurred moon's luminosity shining with indescribable brightness, then nothing. From the depths of dark unconsciousness, however, I felt a familiar gaze pierce my back, a piercing gaze somewhat similar to my dying mind. I felt something grasp the back of my shirt and drag me down, deeper into the depths of the lake.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys, sorry for taking so long to pump this chapter out, I had to rework an idea I had as I was trying to implement it, I’m gonna try to stick to 1 chapter every 2-3 weeks. Hope you guys enjoy the chapter, remember I do not own Naruto, I only own my OCs!

Chapter 3

_Echoes of shattering glass, of thousands of crashing glass pieces, roared around me, awakening me to the darkness which filled my shut eyes' vision. I felt dizzy, my body weightless and mind spinning with every movement I made, I couldn't tell up from down nor front from back. I was adrift, with darkness and the reverberating tinkling of glass pieces my only company. I desperately tried to pry my eyes open, to no avail._

_My heart began to race, breathing evaded me as my chest constricted against every gasp of air I made. I floundered against the emptiness surrounding me, trying to anchor myself to something, anything, only to be met with vacantness, my adrift body spiralling uncontrollably._

_Just as trepidation began to claim me, washing over me and smothering my senses, I felt a sudden shift in the air around me._

**_"Nammy..."_ **

_At the sound of a faint feminine voice, a painfully familiar voice calling out what seemed to be a name, winds began to woosh past me, and my heart sank. I was falling. My voice escaped me, suffocated by the tendrils of dread that crushed my throat as gravity pull me down; I could feel the space around me warp as I fell, twisting every fibre of my being._

_After a lengthy descent, my body finally froze to a stop, with a gasp violently torn from my lips. My heart plummeted to the depths of my stomach where nausea soared to claim me as my mind dizzied from the sudden whiplash._

_It was only after what felt like an eternity had passed, once my mind stopped spinning, and panicked nausea finally ebbed away, did I eventually come back to my senses._

_A rustling sound, of mild winds swaying green waves, submerged my hearing. All the while, glares of white lightened my closed eyes' sight as beams of light beamed onto my shut eyelids._

_I smelt it, the smell of green, of nature itself, before I felt it. The gentle feeling of something straw-like tingling my skin, hundreds of coarse stalks softly caressing my face, arms and legs. The soft warmth which heated my front, and the squelch of soft wetness that cooled my back._

_I tried to open my eyes, my eyelids straining to move under the weight of their weariness, only to be met by an onslaught of blinding sunlight. I squinted back the light, surrendering to darkness for a moment as I struggled to raise my leaden hands to rub my watering eyes, to rub away the pain brought on by the suddenness of such intense brightness. Every movement of my body was enveloped by lethargy, from my curled fingers, rubbing my eyes, to my raised arms trying to keep aloft._

_Once my eyes had dried, and the piercing pain in between them had waned, I opened them once more, more slowly, to let them adjust to the blinding rays of the sun high above me._

_What greeted my sight was a canvas of green, tall stems of what appeared to be grass, encompassing a sea of bright blue, an azure stage for the ball of beaming yellow in the centre of it all, high above—a bright, sunny sky, with not a cloud in sight._

_I tried to sit up, my body crying out its protest as a wave of weariness washed over every joint and limb. Eventually, after minutes spent finding the energy to move, I sat myself up and looked around my surroundings, trying to figure out where I was._

_I sat in the middle of a sea of green, grassy waves rolling across the field before me, on a cliff overlooking ocean blues. Not too far behind me, a lone hefty willow rose from the swells of grass cresting at its overgrown roots, its willowy branches swaying softly with the gentle breeze. Looking out beyond the seas of cerulean and green which spanned far and wide, I could see them fade to white at horizon's edge, where a dense fog consumed all._

_Beneath my breathless awe, while marvelling at the lush paradise which encircled me, pinpricks of familiarity began to prick my mind. **Where am I?** The thought pierced unrelentingly; the words felt wrong as they echoed in my mind, the name of this place latent on the tip of my tongue. Wistful breezes of nostalgia wafted within me as confusion muddled my thoughts, **why is this place so familiar to me? A place I've never been to before?** Again a sense of wrongness swelled within me as though arguing against my thoughts, but despite the pervasive feelings, the feelings gave no answers._

_I tried to stand but the pinpricks of pins and needles numbing my legs had me collapsing to the soft soil, muddying my covered knees brown. It was then I realised I was clothed, A purple and thick shirt the fabric of which felt soft and itchy on my fingertips, the sleeves of which reached my wrists, and black pants that clung to my lower body, made of a befuddling texture that felt so recognisably soft yet coarse. " **...My jumper and jeans"** , the strange words slipped from my mouth, beckoned from somewhere deep in my mind, but despite the words' strangeness, they rolled so effortlessly off the tongue._

_Pushing aside the swelling sense of wrongness welling up inside of me, I finally stood myself up and looked around the weirdly familiar field. Now capable of seeing further at this new height, I could see where the sea of grass ended, at a cliff's edge, past which blue waves rippled in the distance._

_I made my way towards the edge, staggering as my legs had yet to fully awaken, towards the rushing sound of crashing ocean waves. Waves of tall grass caressed my knees as I walked through them, but their caresses lessened, and the breeze grew to a gale as the roar of crashing waves steadily increased, the closer I got to the end of the cliff. The field gave way to a clearing just before the precipice, with a broad stretch of sand ranging far and wide beyond the edge, the gold of the field's loose sun-kissed sands shifted to the browns of the shore's water-logged sands in the distance, where roaring waves crashed upon the coastline._

_Something wasn't right though; I had never been here in my life, yet the lingering sense of something missing refused to abate. I could feel the pinprick of familiarity from earlier begin to stab, the sensation more akin to a knife than a needle. I clutched at my head, hissing with pain, I could feel my head pulse with each beat of strain under the fingertips of my hands. No matter how hard I tried to distract myself from the pain, to focus on anything else, the pain refused to subside, if anything it only intensified. Seeing no other method to soothe the swells of pain, I instead focused on it, anchoring myself to it._

_Immediately I felt the air shift around me as all feeling, even the stabbing pain in my head, and sound vanished, all noise except for the faint sound of crinkling glass shards disappeared. However, soon enough everything returned to normal, though not everything seemed to have stayed the same, for, alongside the rustling of swaying grass behind me and the sound of lapping waves in front of me, the sound of children's joyful squeals now resounded from the beach down below._

_Opening my eyes, I could now make out a couple of figures, a group of people on the shore, either resting on the heated sand or splashing in the ocean's warm waters. I could barely make out the peels of childish laughter, coming from a little blonde girl and a toddling brunette boy who was being chased by her into the crashing waves, over the sounds of cawing seagulls and surging tides._

_As the pain in my head ebbed away, an ache began blooming in my chest at the sight of the playful children. I raised a hand to rub at the unrelenting pain in my chest as I turned to look at the taller figure sitting not too far away, on a picnic blanket by the shore. I could barely make out the smiling face of a brunette woman, setting out plates of food from a basket beside her, through my increasingly blurring vision._

_I felt the droplets of something drip onto my hand, which I hadn't realised had begun to clutch tightly at my shirt, and as I looked down towards it, I felt the streams of tears streaming down my cheeks. I let go of my top and raised my hands to wipe away the flowing tears, but nothing I did could dam the flood. As I shut my eyes, rubbing at them to suppress the tears which leaked from them ceaselessly, I could feel a growing sense of emptiness gnawing deep in my heart, gorging itself on my core._

_Out of all the emotions battling within me, one rose above the rest, its winds battering my thoughts. It was confusion. As numbing loneliness feasted on my heart, for reasons unknown to me, my heart yearned for the comfort of the people below. " **Why do I feel like this? I don't even know them..."** The words hiccupped from my mouth, blubbered as sobs began to rake my body, my heart and mind tired of the constant swirl of emotions and the gnawing sense of wrongness. **But then why do I feel like I know them? Why do I want to be with them, to be found by them?...why do I miss them?** As thoughts begging for answers began to throb in my head, I could feel my mind desperately trying to answer them, sounding the names of the people down below, but the sounds it murmured sounded more like disjointed gibberish than actual words._

_As the pain pulsing in my head tightened like a vice, choking my thoughts, I could feel the tension snap my strangled heart. Shattered shards of my splintered heart shrieked their cries, their screams garbled as they sunk deep into the pools of my unshed tears, drowning in their depths. I dropped to my knees alongside the shards, curling into myself, fingers gouging my arms as I hugged myself, but the pain my digging fingers caused was no match for the pain of the gaping hollow within my chest, threatening to engulf me._

****

**_"Nami!"_ **

_The world around me darkened, displacing with such violence, at the sound of her voice calling out yet again. The ground below me gave way to air, distracting my heart from the onslaught of emotions as it lurched with my spinning body, I was suddenly adrift in darkness once more. The rumbling waves of the ocean and the rustling swaying of tall grasses gave way to quiet disquiet, replaced by the muted soft chimes of clinking glass shards._

_Before me, where once stood the cliff's edge overlooking the sun-kissed sands of the beach, was now a floating mirror's frame, shattered with its shards scattered around it. Yet, with delicate slowness, the shards of glass began to rotate, drifting with tentativeness towards the mirror-less mirror frame. As the shards started to clink together, plinking back into place within the frame, a mist-like current of radiant light softly ebbed from behind me, flowing around me and into the forming mirror. Reaching a hand out to the gleaming haze, tenderly tingling to the touch, a rush of sensations melted into me, travelling from my hand to my mind and heart. Of joy kissed by the summer sun, sprayed by crashing ocean waves, and resounding with the sounds of carefree laughter._

_I retreated from the gleaming stream, looking to the newly-formed mirror now consuming the last wisps of the stream. However, instead of being greeted by my reflection, a shifting spectacle filled my vision, a coastal scenery with shadowed figures splashing at its shores._

**_"-ami, list-"_ **

_Bewilderment tainting my thoughts, I turned towards the familiar voice, where the current brimming with sentimental sensations stemmed from, only to be met by an incredible sight. Throughout the empty nothingness, stretching as far as the eye could see, was an endless sea, consisting of thousands of framed mirrors many of which lay shattered, with their fragments adrift around them. From the broken mirrors, similar streams of light emanated, their wisps of light flowing like rivers up above, merging into a flashing spectacle of light high above. It was there that I finally saw her. In front of the slowly enveloping display of lights, floated a girl, her back to the blinding light that began to drown out the darkness of the void. I could barely make out her brown locks of hair, the fluttering of her purplish apron-skirt, engulfed in shadows as the radiant light began to immerse all insight._

**_"not sa-...-eed to ru-"_ **

_I could barely hear her voice, drowned out by the ear-splitting humming of the light, and her visage blurred as my eyes watered from the pain of the blinding rays, boring from behind her._

_She vanished from sight as the light engulfed her, everything in sight drowned in the shimmering tsunami, and before long I too was overwhelmed by the deafening and blinding onslaught of white._

Before I knew it, my mind rose to awareness, and my body was no longer loose in soundless emptiness nor resting on a rustling bed of grass. Instead, the sensations that greeted my body's senses was an uneven hardness pressing into my back and the sounds of dripping droplets of water echoing around me.

The once intense light had lightened to soft gleams, beams replacing its earlier flares of white. As I blinked my tired eyes open, dim rays of sunlight filled my waking sight, slipping through the cracks of a partly collapsed stone ceiling, stained with age and consumed by moss.

Confusion, which had filled my mind when the visions from earlier played out, now flooded my thoughts once more as I found myself in yet another unknown place. _Where am I?_ The words resounded in my mind, _how I had gotten here?_ It begged for an answer to no avail, met with an unyielding blankness, a blankness that pierced with pain if I focused on it for too long.

I decided to sit myself up to get a better look at my surroundings. Though fatigue still blanketed my mind, my body had no difficulty sitting up on the floor's stone slabs, the slabs rough and worn to the touch, and my body buzzing with an unfamiliar energy. As I looked down at my limbs, turning them back and forth and moving them about as I began to stand up, I felt it. The feel of a constant crackling, of countless streams of...something ebbing within my body, its innumerable pulsing roots entwining and entangling every fibre of my being.

Looking up from my limbs and taking in my surroundings, I realised that this sensation wasn't coming from my body alone. Just at the edge of my awareness, I could sense it smothering the air, crackling around me, I could feel it pulsing within the moss covering the crumbling stone walls, and I could feel its hum deep inside the earth.

My mind suffocated, the trembling rippling of these strange sensations smothering my thoughts as my head strained against the ceaseless onslaught of awareness. I clamped my eyes and ears shut, trying to erase the sea of orbs which washed over everything within and without filling my sight, to deafen its constant hum ringing in my ears. It was all for nought. Even behind my close eyelids, my eyes strained with the display of blinding strands, ringing deafeningly despite my covered ears.

Just as my mind began to sink into the depths of darkness, drowned by the burden of awareness, it dimmed. It hadn't vanished; it didn't slip away, it just...dimmed. The blazing blue was barely discernable, barely tinting the colours of my surroundings which were visible once more, the pulsing sensation of the air around me and the currents within me now at a tolerable low thrum. The ringing had lessened, and I could once more hear the echoing drips of water droplets resounding in the room once more. Only pulsing streams of blue circuiting my body remained, buzzing with each pulse. Though my mind still strained under the strangeness of the sensations within me, it was more manageable, now that it was the sole source of abnormality. It was now, capable of focusing on the feelings of this sensation ebbing throughout me that I felt it muffle strangely around my ears and eyes, the stream a mere trickle of a hum there compared to the torrents of buzzing everywhere else inside of me.

Before my mind could succumb to confusion, the fluttering of wings broke the silence and derailed any trains of thoughts. The fluttering rose in loudness behind me, and I could feel soft puffs of air blow gently on the nape of my neck where specks of tingles now tingled, something having landed on it. I could barely make out six light touches before a tickling sensation brushed alongside the other pinpricks, sending shivers shivering down my spine.

As I jolted a hand to the back of my hand, to wave away whatever had rested itself on the back of my neck, I felt whatever it was flitter away, displacing the air around my grasping hand, tinkling sounds sounding out all the while. It took me a moment to realise just what it was. As its soft chimes echoed around me, I realised it was someone giggling; it seemed that I wasn't alone in here.

I felt my heart lighten with hope, hoping that I wasn't alone in this dreary place. Clutching the back of my neck, I spun around, looking behind me to see who was snickering. But no one was there. _But then... who's giggling?_ Even now, the twinkles of laughter continued to echo all around me, seemingly coming from everywhere at once.

After a while spent looking around me, clueless as sniggers filled my hearing, the giggles finally ceased as a voice full of mischief called out. **_Over here!_** The words echoed, light and bright, from seemingly everywhere yet no matter where I looked in the room, I couldn't see them. **_No silly! Down here, to your right!_** The voice snickered out, tone dripping with mockery.

It was then I noticed the little creature, resting on my right shoulder, a rose-red butterfly. It was then I realised that the chimes of giggles, the twinkling voice, had all sounded inside of my mind. _But how did I_...I shook my head, looking away from the minuscule bug and clutched at my forehead as befuddled thoughts began to swirl my mind. _I must be imagining things, the pain from earlier must be messing with my head, how could a butterfly talk to me, and in my mind at that?_

I could hear the butterfly's wings flap agitatedly, the tone of its disembodied voice rang exasperatedly in my mind, I'm ** _right here you know! And I'll have you know I'm as real as it gets, I know buds such as yourself tend to be lightless, having yet to bloom, but I didn't expect you to be this dim!_** Its voice swung from singsong like, fruity with musical notes, at the start to harsh, heated with temper at the end. Just as I began processing its words, the butterfly fluttered from my shoulder and began flapping at my face, perching itself upon my nose and filling my sight with the reds of its wings.

I couldn't help but gawk at the small creature; confusion colouring my thoughts as I struggled to comprehend that a butterfly was talking to me. **_You might want to close your mouth youngling, lest you want to catch a mouthful of nectar!_** The pitched voice sang out, giggling with mirth afterwards as I clamped my mouth shut, before babbling incoherently as words alluded me.

"How is this possible...how are you able to talk?" strangulated came the words from my lips, squinting at the small thing with disbelief, that is until I remembered what it had said. "And what do you mean dim-" **_Oh but it's all so simple budling_** , the cooed honeyed words cut me off. I huffed, peeved at the condescending tone which aerated the butterfly's airy voice, but I stayed silent nonetheless to finally get some answers.

The butterfly fluttered from my face, flapping itself toward the top of my head and resting itself upon my brown locks of hair. **_We focused our thoughts into chakra_** , the butterfly stated steadily, matter-of-factly, **_which you, my dearest caterpillar, then sensed as thoughts_**. I blinked, once then twice, my eyelids drooping into a deadpanned expression as I found myself doused with disbelief.

 _...Chakra?_ I raised my hand to my hair, trying to scratch away the confusion itching my thoughts, causing the butterfly to flutter off my head with a shrill, **_hey!_** echoing amidst my confused thoughts. _What on earth is "chakra"?_ I had never heard of the word before, and yet it sounded so familiar, a girlish voice that couldn't possibly have been mine nor the butterfly's, said the word in my mind.

Just as my mind drew to a blank trying to place a name to the new voice, drawing blanks which lanced my head with pain, the butterfly's sweet voice drew my attention again, resting on my left shoulder where it now sat. **_Yes, chakra._** The butterfly sighed out, frustrated at my apparent lack of understanding. **_The energy that you sensed is chakra...it's in all living things, within all nature, precious bud. We could sense it overwhelming you, felt the way your chakra crackled with exertion. So we helped mask it for you, at least until you reacquaint yourself to it, dear._** So that was what that sensation was, that blinding, deafening sensation. Chakra. Raising an arm, I took a good look at it, now having a name for the flaring blue streams coursing within it and the rest of my body, which tingled with its constant buzz. "Ok...so, that was your doing?" I asked softly, voice filled with the desire for more answers, "how did you...mask my senses though, how is that even possible?"

The butterfly fluttered to the air once more, floating in front of me, its wings flapping agitatedly, **_come now, you should know this already sapling, you're acting like a butterfly drunk on nectar!_** The butterfly's voice had started soft-spoken but grew shrill towards the end as it ridiculed me. **_We simply helped eased the burden on your sensory system, cutting you off from the rest of the world's chakra; it was but a simple thing caterpillar._** The voice sang in my head, tone lecturing as the butterfly flapped its crimson wings energetically. Without any warning though, the butterfly's fluttering lessened, drooping down onto my arm as it looked up to me. **_Budling...you should know all of this, don't tell me you've forgotten the lessons we taught you all those years ago..._**

The perky little thing opened and closed its wings droopily, seemingly deep in thought, lost in their sadness. **_We knew having you help us would've done you no good, could even feel how it messed with the flow of your chakra, deep inside your head...but to think you would forget this much-._** It paused, its wobbly voice stopped in its sullen ramblings, wings frozen in place. After a moment of still silence, during which worry had begun to well up within me, the butterfly spoke up once more.

 ** _Tell us, beloved caterpillar...do you know who we are? Do you remember us?_** The usually honeyed voice croaked, almost choked, with sadness. As I looked at the pitiful creature, at the way its wings drooped, I scoured my memories for an answer to cheer the butterfly up. Alas, as much as I'd have loved to tell the little thing otherwise, I couldn't remember it at all. However, just as I opened my mouth to apologise to explain that I had no idea who it was, I felt the buzzing chakra in my head, eyes and ears shift ever so slightly, and an image came unbeckoned to my mind.

_I saw myself, standing in front of a looming crumbling statue near the edge of a forest, its stones time-worn but the intricate hieroglyphs carved all over its surface had not a single scratch. A swarm of butterflies fluttered hesitantly around me, leaving a vast breadth of space around the statue, their wings flapping with hesitance, refusing to come near me. As I reached my hand out towards the hieroglyphs, I could feel the chakra which flowed within my body convulsed, see it burning brightly. All the while, the sound of countless voices, all sounding the same, hummed a word in my mind. **Danketsu.**_

"Danketsu?", immediately, as the sound of the word left my lips, the rose butterfly fluttered from my shoulders ecstatically, wafting around in front of my face, causing me to lean back. **_Oh, budling! You do remember us, oh and to think we had lost hope...albeit you do seem to have forgotten much, but we'll fix that in no time you can be sure of that, caterpillar!_** Its voice warbled out, singing its joy as it landed on my nose, its proboscis coming out to tap at my nose, tickling it all the while.

Scrunching my nose, I batted at the butterfly to get it off, causing the butterfly, Danketsu to flap away with a loud, **_Stop that, you'll ruin our wings!_** ringing shrilly in my mind. "Ok, but what happened to me, what was I doing exactly to help you? Wait a minute...what do you mean, cutting me off from the rest of the world?" The words stumbled past my lips, the questions jumbling over each other, each desperate for an answer.

At my words, the butterfly calmed, its wings slowed its flaps in contemplation. **_All in due time little bud...we need you to recover yourself first. Besides, we are content enough now to have you with us, little one. Honestly budling you had us sick with worry!_** As it finished its tittered tirade, my mind though unsatisfied with the lack of an answer, couldn't help but focus on one particular word, _Us?_ But before I could ask Danketsu bestowed the solution for me, well, technically its friends did.

Without warning, I felt the muted chakra around my eyes and ears rise to a buzz once more, flooding back as though a dam had lifted. It was then that all around me, where once was green moss and grey stones, now flashed an array of colours. Ears drowned by the flapping of many wings which once took on the image of their surroundings, wings of countless butterflies that have now revealed themselves, a veritable swarm of them forming a sphere around me. _Camouflage?_ So that's what Danketsu meant. Realisation dawned on me as I finally understood what Danketsu meant, why the sensations from earlier had dimmed, it was because of the swarm surrounding me. _Cut off from the world, huh?_ He had to give it to Danketsu; it was an ingenious idea, though it didn't explain why he couldn't feel their chakras, after all, doesn't it flow in all living things?

Before I could voice his question, however, voices similar to Danketsu's resounded within my head, began to overwhelm my mind and stifle my thoughts. Thankfully though, just as the swarm of chaos had started to spiral out of control, Danketsu's voice roared within my head, silencing everything within the room. Though silenced, the flock continued its fluttering flurry, flapping around me but maintaining the bubble.

 ** _Right then,_** Danketsu began, voice low with exasperation ** _, now that we've calmed ourselves, it's time we return to the main issue...you may remember us, caterpillar, but its all for nought if you can't even remember your name._** Danketsu's voice hummed lowly, tone tinged with slight worry though still glimmering with hope. **_Do you know your name, budling?_**

It was then that I realised the one thing I had yet to address, I couldn't remember my name.

Just as I stumbled for answers, scouring my memories for an answer, the vision of the dream I had earlier resurfaced. The sight of a girl floating in the emptiness calling out to someone, calling out what seemed to be a name, played out in my head. She was facing me, reaching towards me...had she been calling out to me this whole time? In that case, seeing as it's the only plausible explanation, Nami must be my name then, right?

Seeing no other option, I decided to take the name for myself, regardless of whether the girl had been calling out for me or someone else. Looking up from my reverie to the swarm of butterflies fluttering patiently, I whispered the name, voice low and filled with uncertainty.

"Nami...my name is Nami."

The swarm frenzied once more, their cries of singular joy echoing in my mind, before they were sharply silenced once more by Danketsu. **_Oh, our dear, beloved caterpillar. It warms us to know you are back with us._** Danketsu's voice lilted warmly with warmth, the care it had for me blatant, stirring my heart with emotions both strange and familiar. **_Though you are still lost-confused-and have precious little time to gather your wits, we will nonetheless regain your scattered memories; we can promise you that little one!_** The fiery red butterfly's voice rang with eagerness, fluttering atop my hair and bellowing once more. Now let us away. Much time has been lost to make up, much frolicking and feasting to be done, and we must make up for it, we must...the fruits of our labour, the taste of it, shall soon be ours once more. The butterfly's voice spoke, sung lowly and smooth, steeled with inexplicable determination.

With that, I decided to move, the swarm of butterflies though still surrounding me, bled into the environment, camouflaging once more so that I may see where I was walking. Though confusion again swirled within me, with questions such as, _where was I? Who were these butterflies, whose chakra I could not sense, and how do they know me? Why couldn't I recall my name?_ The tempest of questions swept my mind with their torrents, demanding answers, though it would seem I would have to wait for the answers that would calm the storm. Though I suppose patience was the least I could give to the butterflies, after what they've done for me, protecting me from the onslaught of this world's chakra. Perhaps in following their lead, I'll finally find the answers my mind so desperately seeks.


End file.
